


Impartiality Of Consequencss, Balanced Reality Checks Volume I

by changingdestiny4



Series: Impartiality Of Consequences, Balanced Reality Checks Mini Series [1]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Consequence Impartiality, Dose of Reality, F/M, Gen, No Favoritism, Stiff Talking To
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-21
Updated: 2019-10-21
Packaged: 2020-12-28 02:42:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21129440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/changingdestiny4/pseuds/changingdestiny4
Summary: A series of one shots in which characters, mostly in a pair, are called out and/or together given consequences for their wrong or foolish actions, but in an impartial and non prejudiced fashion, each character's punishments or reality doses proportionate to their crime.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> During Oliver's final battle with Ra's, a former friend here pointed out that Felicity was willing to risk the city to save Oliver as though his life had more value than the city's. While she was wrong, no one's called Maseo out for doing the same thing in flashbacks when giving the virus to killers to save his wife.
> 
> Looking back, he was also wrong but no one's said anything against him that I remember. It sometimes feels like there's a consequence imbalance here, caused by favorable or non-favorable prejudice over a character, when a non-favorite gets called out while the favorite or tolerated gets nothing, despite also doing something wrong, and is still loved, like Felicity and Oliver, and Marsdin and J'onn, or if they're both called out for wrongdoing, the hated are treated harsher or given more than a scolding compared to the favorite or tolerated, even in cases when the favorite's actions were worse than the non-favorite or hated, like Thea and Nora for example.
> 
> Thinking about it, I believe all punishments must fit the crime and be properly appropriated regardless of who's a favorite and tolerated vs. a non-favorite or hated. And so this fic is my first attempt at balance on this site starting with Maseo.

It had been a harrowing evening for everyone following Tatsu's kidnapping by China White but Maseo and Oliver were just extremely grateful they'd been able to retrieve her. Maseo should've realized however that Waller would've anticipated his plan to recover his wife and therefore interfered to exchange the virus for her but it was what it was and now it was time for bed. He and Tatsu had just finished putting their son to bed and Oliver was on his way to do the same for himself after bidding them all goodnight. Before they could, however, Tatsu pulled her husband to the side, wanting to discuss something with him, and he complied. She took a moment to gather her thoughts, and then began.

"Listen, while I'm grateful that you were there to rescue me and bring me back home to you and to our son, and were willing to do whatever it took to accomplish that, I cannot, in good conscience, support or condone how you went about it", she said to him with a grave expression written upon her face.

Maseo frowned, confused by his wife's words.

"What exactly do you mean, and what does it as to how I recovered you and, as you said, brought you back to our son?", he asked her, feeling perplexed.

"What I mean, husband, is that while you did rescue me, you were willing to potentially sacrifice millions of innocent people within this city, allowing them to perish in the process. Doesn't the lives of those people, those wives and mothers, matter as much as mine? Did you even think to take any of that into consideration when you willingly exchanged what you thought was the real virus to China White?!", she demanded, sounding upset.

Maseo winced, but tried to explain himself.

"Listen, I understand how you must feel, believe me I do, but exchanging the virus for you was the only way to save you and if I had to sacrifice millions of others, I would do so in a heartbeat", he defended himself, trying to get her to see things from his perspective. Tatsu however reacted to his words with disbelief written upon her face.

"Do you even hear yourself right now?! Do the precious lives of others have so little value to you that you would just consider them disposable so long as you got what you wanted, everyone else be da****?!", she exclaimed, starting to sound angry. "The man I married would never say things such as that or behave in that sort of fashion and I am ashamed of you right now. My life is precious, yes, but so are the lives of everyone else and if you truly acted like the man I love, then you would most certainly find a way to save both myself and everyone else!".

Maseo looked chastised upon hearing his wife's words, knowing that she was correct in her evaluation of his actions. Tatsu's expression softened, and she moved closer and took his hand in hers.

"As to your claim that there was no other way to save me, there actually was and it was proven tonight. You had Oliver with you as backup and my respect for him has grown since he was instrumental in saving me and one day I hope to repay him. But as I was saying, it turned out that you did not need to use the methods you did since you and I, with Oliver's help, were able to extract ourselves from the situation and remove ourselves together, like we always do, while launching terrible pain towards our enemies in the process. And giving White a fake virus should've been your own plan in the beginning, at least to buy time.

"I love you, always will, and I'd like to reiterate once more that I'm extremely grateful that you did not give up on me and were willing to do all that you could in order to retrieve me, and it makes me love you even more but while I can understand, and even somewhat sympathize, with your decision, I cannot, in good conscience, let it go without calling you out on it and if this had led to the virus being unleashed and innocent victims losing their lives, then their blood would've been on your hands just as much as it would've also been on White's hands. And I hope that next time a situation like this arises, you'll make a better choice."

Maseo listened carefully to all of the gentle, yet firm, words of his wife and knew she was right on all counts. What he had done, while with good intent and even deep love, was also tremendously selfish and multiple lives could've been lost down the line. He sighed, and looked up into her eyes.

"Everything you've said is true, and you still continue to be as wise and honorable as the day I met you. Forgive me for what I did and what I attempted to do. It's just that I love you so much that I allowed it to compromise my judgment. But what I did was wrong and I should've never been willing to sacrifice the lives of others and thank you for opening my eyes and for returning me to reason. You are truly a better person than I am", he replied to her while bowing his head in shame, feeling contrite and remorseful over his actions.

Tatsu smiled at him with love shining in her eyes and reaching over, cupped her husband's cheek.

"I forgive you completely my husband, and I know that what happened tonight was a moment of weakness and I still believe that you are a good man and will always remain the same man I love", she said to him soothingly but then added, "Actions do have consequences however and because of what you pulled, you'll have to sleep on the couch tonight. But don't worry love, you'll only be sleeping there tonight and only tonight instead of for the rest of the week alright?"

Maseo's eyes widened at his wife's words, and he could see the full seriousness in her eyes despite the mirth written across her face.

"I can live with that", he answered with a smile of his own, and added, "And I can't say that I don't deserve it."

With all of that said and done, the couple exchanged a brief kiss goodnight and Maseo went to bed on the couch while Tatsu went to sleep inside of their bedroom, the former having learned a major lesson for his wife that he would never forget and was grateful that she was able, as always, to knock some sense into him.

Unknown to them, Oliver, being a little nosy, had been listening in the whole time and could also understand where Tatsu was coming from and also felt chastised for going along with Maseo's plan. At that moment, he vowed to himself that he would not allow anyone to try and sacrifice multiple innocents just to save even himself since the lives of everyone mattered just as much as his.

Because of that, and during his final conflict with Ra's in the future, when he heard about Felicity trying to persuade Ray to potentially sacrifice their city, which was under siege of the same virus, just to save him, he was not impressed and very upset by this. When they were alone he confronted her and firmly called her out, giving her a stiff talking to and not mincing his words but using more or less the same words Tatsu had used with Maseo, making it clear to her that everyone else's lives were just as important as his life and he would choose to save them first since that's what real heroes do.

Felicity was immediately moved to shame and repentance, and especially after he'd also shared with her the similar situation between Maseo and Tatsu and how she'd rightfully called him out for doing the same. She apologized to Oliver and later to Ray, vowing to never again suggest something like that ever again and to instead behave like a true hero who values all lives and does her best to save everyone she can and not just her loved ones. She lived up to that vow and became more the woman she'd fully become into he future.

And so both Maseo in the past and Felicity in the present were taught a valuable lesson by those close to them and it was one that benefited them tremendously and one they carried with them always.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As we know, Dinah behaved horribly and almost like a villainess when she hunted Laurel 2.0, and while Vince, her lover, had become a better man, he was not a saint in the beginning but was a killer since he'd murdered innocents alongside the guilty, including guilty people who didn't deserve death, and was out of control. And so Dinah had major blinders on and severely dishonored Laurel's legacy.
> 
> However, while what Dinah did was wrong, Laurel 2.0 was still a killer and did murder Vince, and that should have consequences. And for those who'd say that Cayden forced her, that's an impossible argument since considering how powerful she is with her cry and fighting skills, she couldn't subdue Cayden at that moment? Plus earlier in S6 she was relentlessly murdering innocents and taking sadistic pleasure in her slaughters to the point that even Cayden's disturbed. And yet we only pound hard on Dinah but not on Laurel 2.0?
> 
> And so this chapter will be my way to correct that.

After the brutal and ugly civil war that had transpired between OTA and the Outsiders that evening, which left Felicity shot, Diggle's hand in pain, and Rene in the hospital, which was Rene's own fault, Oliver had brought both Laurel 2.0 and Dinah into an abandoned room and was pacing back and forth, gathering his thoughts. After some time, he rounded on Dinah and she could see the fury in his eyes.

"WHAT THE HE** IS WRONG WITH YOU AND YOUR TEAM?!", he growled harshly at her, his voice raised, while Dinah on her part shrunk back flinched. "SERIOUSLY, WHAT THE HE** IS WRONG WITH YOU THREE?! You have the audacity to consider yourselves heroes and yet your actions tonight, attacking myself and my team unprovoked, putting our lives in danger, putting both my sister, MY SISTER?!, and Quentin Lance, a man who I consider a father figure, in danger with that explosion just to kill Black Siren, getting my wife shot, and hacking into Diggle's hand chip were not the actions of heroes but of villains."

Oliver paused for a moment, working to control his righteous and powerful anger, and then continued while holding Dinah's gaze with an intense stare on his part.

"How dare you claim to hold the moral high ground after the events of tonight," he hissed. "And worst of all, you were willing to kill Black Siren even though I was more than clear that we needed her alive in order to help us recover the money stolen from the city. For a woman who claims to care about the city, you were willing to let it collapse and go down the drain. And even if that wasn't your intent, that would've been the result if you'd succeeded and I'll be da**** if I allow anyone, directly or indirectly, to bring my city that I swore to defend, to ruin.

"And all of this for what? For Vince? I do understand how it feels to lose someone you care about deeply, believe me I do, and I promise you that he will receive justice for his murder. But tonight you acted as though he was always a saint even though you know full well that he was a killer himself, willing to take down the innocent alongside the guilty, his actions endangering this city. And while he did repent and become a better man, it does not change what he had done and I have no doubt that if the Vince you saw die were here right now and had borne witness to your recent actions, he'd be ashamed of you since you were the one to help him choose a better path.

"And so you were not honoring his memory but dishonoring it. In fact, you are unworthy of even carrying the mantle of the Black Canary. I do admit that my Laurel was not a saint and was sometimes arrogant, self-righteous, highly flawed, hypocritical, and made severe mistakes which had regrettable consequences or made things worse. But at her core she was a compassionate and generous person, helped the city tremendously, and she most certainly never endangered the welfare of this city. You on the other hand clearly lack her qualities, instead dishonored her legacy, and I should've vetted you in the beginning.

"Therefore I'm not going to allow you to be the Black Canary ever again and nor are you allowed to carry that name regardless of what path you currently take and Quentin would be well within his rights to press charges against you and not just for the explosion but also for direct assault and battery on his person."

Saying that, and to punctuate his words, Oliver marched over to Dinah with an angry purpose and without preamble, reached over and ripped her mask away from her eyes. Dinah gulped and trembled, knowing that she was in deep trouble and could not say anything in her defense. Once he was finished with her, he then turned and faced Laurel 2.0 with a stern and scary expression upon his face, causing her to look at him nervously.

"AS FOR YOU, DON'T THINK YOU'RE OFF THE HOOK EITHER!", he said to her loudly and sternly, causing her to reel back, her stomach tightening as it was filled with apprehension. "You have been going around murdering people in my city, nearly all of them innocent, and also joined Cayden's terrorist cabal as a part of his efforts to destabilize and then destroy this city's infrastructure. You also, according to Cayden during a private conversation I had with him post his repentance and before his murder, took great pleasure during your almost savage murders and sometimes killed even when he hadn't ordered you to.

"And as for Vince, you cannot act like you did not have a choice when you killed him or that you were afraid of Cayden. For one thing, you clearly had no trouble acting outside of his authority when you murdered outside of his orders, unsteady being snarly with him, and so you clearly had a choice. And furthermore the Flash, who's a very good friend of mine, told me how powerful you were and to the point that you brought him to his knees and used your Canary Cry to knock down buildings. Yet despite all of that tremendous strength and power, Yu couldn't take out Cayden in order to save Vince?

"I'm sorry, but you made a choice when there were clearly other options and while Dinah's actions tonight were also wrong and she has a lot to answer for, you yourself have a lot to answer for as well. And while Vince was a mass murderer, you are also one and more so.

"Therefore I've spoken to Director Michaels of ARGUS and she will be placing you into indefinite custody for the murders you committed both here in Central City and here, including Vince's murder, and also on the grounds of terrorism and colluding with a cyber-terrorist. And if you want any chance of a slightly reduced sentence, then you'd better tell me where I can find the money needed to help this city rebuild. Is that clear?!"

Laurel 2.0 could do nothing but nod weakly in acquiescence, bowing her head with shame. She saw how right Oliver was and that she could've chosen a way other than murdering Vince, and it was her own fault that she'd chosen to swear loyalty to powerful and dangerous men like Zoom, Prometheus, and now Cayden.

With that said, Oliver sent Dinah on her way with a stern warning to stay away from him, Diggle, and Felicity until she'd hopefully cleaned up her act regardless of how long it took and reiterated his warning not to hold the mantle and identity of Black Canary, and especially for purposes of vengeance. And later on Quentin did press charges on Dinah for assault and battery, but made up some story that did not expose her as a vigilante while Dinah, knowing how much she owed him, went along with said story and had to spend some time in jail while giving up her gun and badge.

After it was over, she moved away from the city and to Gotham where she met another vigilante known as the Question, and after hearing her story, he took her under his wing and helped her manage and slowly eliminate her anger issues alongside her tendency towards violence and her quick temper, teaching her control. And Dinah committed herself completely to his training since Oliver's hard words caused her to fully repent and she really wanted to become a better person and a true hero.

The Question would also, eventually, take her to a shaman who lived among the mountains of Asia, and this shaman would put her through meditative sessions in order to help her even out her temper and find balance, peace, and tranquility. And he also helped imprint into her mind a philosophy that martial arts was for defense only, both to defend herself or in defense of others.

Having found her center and now being fully matured, Dinah returned to Star City and resumed her vigilante duties under a new name, Night Raven, and she committed herself and her mission to helping its citizens, rescuing and protecting them whenever they were in severe trouble, standing up for the little people, while serving as an angel of justice against the city's most dangerous criminals but without using more force against them than she had to.

Years into the future, which was NOT dystopian, Dinah would go on to form a network of male and female heroes known as the Ravens in order to repel an invasion led by a new Deathstroke and his own army of Deathstrokes, and she was careful to lead by example.

As for Laurel 2.0, she was locked away and isolated by A.R.G.U.S. a little over a year for her crimes during which she thought about her entire life and the choices she'd made with it. It caused her to be filled with deep shame, regret, and remorse for all of her actions and she felt great sorrow for the lives she'd taken. In fact, she'd already begun to feel shame before her incarceration and due to that, she helped Oliver not only recover the money that was stolen from the city but also helped capture Ricardo Diaz.

After that time period, she was released under probation due to having proven that she'd truly repented and wanted to change and because of that, Oliver and Lyla provided her with a therapist who helped her in her journey and deal with all of her issue. Plus Oliver also taught her some therapeutic exercises, including those taught to him by both Shado and Tatsu. Her sessions with the therapist also showed her the value and preciousness of human life.

Oliver, in addition to the therapeutic exercises, including deep breathing exercises, also put her through a training regimen mirroring the one taught by the character Mr. Miyagi in "The Karate Kid" and it was very beneficial to her in teaching her control and balance, not to mention the extra slapping the water lessons he gave to her which were also taught to him by Shado.

Quentin would also take her under his wing and become a father figure to her and under his guidance, along with her wish to become more like the woman her doppelganger was, studied law and eventually took over her role as assistant D.A. and then eventually rose to D.A. itself.

The time would come in which Laurel 2.0 and Dinah would reunite and have a heart to heart, during which they sincerely apologized, and then forgave, each other, expressing remorse for everything that had transpired between them. They also shared with each other their respective journeys towards redemption and inner peace while also making an agreement to help each other remain in the light and hold each other accountable if either of them ever slipped, forming a friendship which slowly strengthened and deepened over time.

Laurel 2.0, but only after she was found to be worthy, was given the Black Canary mantle by Oliver and she did an excellent job honoring it and her doppelganger's legacy while Dinah was very proud and happy for her. And in the future, she also formed her own network of heroes, an all-female team known as the Canaries, in order to help Dinah and the Ravens in their war against the Deathstrokes.

And so things ended well for Laurel 2.0 and Dinah and despite the terrible things they'd done in their past, they'd repented, managed to find redemption, and became the heroes they knew they could become and true partners in protecting their city, both in the present and future.

They were also diligent about teaching their followers not to make the same mistakes they made but instead to always remain on the straight and narrow, reminding them of what it means to be heroes and protectors while honoring the legacy of Oliver Queen, his mission, and what it stood for, and the legacies of Laurel and Sara Lance, their mission, and their empathy towards others. And the city could not find better protectors than both the Ravens and the Canaries, protectors who proved themselves worthy enough of carrying the torch of those past 3 heroes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reason why I added the Question was because a long time ago, someone told me that he was the one who helped the comic book version of Helena, the Huntress, get onto the straight and narrow when she was on the brink of darkness. And so I figured he could also be the one to help Dinah as well in her journey towards a better path.
> 
> I also picture the matured and calm Dinah within this chapter to be the same version of her from the S7 flash-forwards, but even calmer than that.
> 
> Also the Deathstrokes are a canon terrorist cult.
> 
> And now the next chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I admit Laurel behaved badly after Sara returned and while she had a right to be furious at her and Oliver for their past betrayal, she shouldn't have blamed them for her problems in her current life (I couldn't remember if she had despite the other doses of reality on the matter, and so I looked it up on Wiki and found out that she did indeed do so). Therefore my colleagues here were right to call her out, especially in that her becoming an addict was not Oliver's or Sara's fault.
> 
> However, I'm starting to think that Oliver and Sara were also in the wrong in regards to how they handled things within the pertaining episode. You see, the Lance dinner party was only supposed to be for the Lances and Oliver's not a Lance. Therefore him showing up was disrespectful to them even if Sara invited him. And Sara on her part was insensitive towards her family by doing that, especially since she did it behind their backs since they weren't consulted first.
> 
> And it wasn't the time for Oliver and Sara to reveal their relationship, even if it was sort of accidental, since that evening was supposed to be about healing for the Lances. And so even if it wasn't out of ill intent, Oliver and Sara still used poor judgment and needed to be firmly called out just as much as Laurel. And I'm saying this as a firm Canarrow shipper.

"We need to talk guys and settle this once and for all", Quentin firmly said to Oliver, Sara, and Laurel as they sat on the couch across from him, his arms crossed. After the dinner mess of yesterday evening due to Sara bringing Oliver despite nobody except her inviting him, combined with her sister's obnoxious behavior, Quentin invited all 3 of then to his home for what felt was a much needed talking to. In fact, he did not give them much of a choice in the matter.

"I'm going to address you first Laurel. Your behavior was outrageous and totally out of line", Quentin began sternly as he addressed his eldest daughter. "Now I know that Oliver and your sister getting back together is an uncomfortable subject for you and you have every right to be furious and upset over their past betrayal. He**, their renewed relationship is actually a difficult subject for even me to swallow. But to blame them, me, your mom, and everyone else around you for your problems such as your drinking, substance abuse, and losing your job are nobody's fault except for your own and you need to take responsibility for your actions. In fact, I even overheard some of what Oliver said to you in the hall last night and while we may not see eye to eye on everything, I can honestly say that I don't blame him for saying that he's done taking the blame or caring."

Laurel winced upon hearing those last particular words from her father, tears forming in her eyes and streaming down her cheeks. Quentin's gaze softened slightly upon seeing her expression, but continued what he had to say nonetheless.

"Honestly Laurel. I cannot believe that you would succumb to this path though I can't exactly say that I've set a proper example due to my own actions in the past and not just with the alcoholism, but also my own irresponsibility in that I also blamed everyone else for my downward spiral, and especially Oliver. I was wrong however and am doing all I can to become a better person, and much of it's because of you. But now you need to do your part, clean up your own act, and work on getting yourself together and while I understand that it's your way of coping with Tommy's loss, it's not the way to handle it and if he were here right now, he'd be ashamed of you.

"Furthermore, I don't ever want to hear you complaining about others being at fault for your choices or you putting the blame on anyone else for your downwards spiral and I'd also like to make clear to you that no matter what, all of us here, including your mother, will be there to help free you from your addiction and what you're going through. We're all here for you baby girl, but you've gotta make an effort. Oh, and if you ever throw one of your wine bottles at my door ever again, me being unhappy will be an understatement. Is that clear?"

Laurel sighed deeply, but nodded while wiping her tear streaks off of her cheeks. She knew that everything her father had just told her was the truth and while her sister and Oliver getting back together was hard for her and brought up some old wounds, she knew however that she couldn't blame them for the struggles she was currently going through and knew in her heart that Tommy would definitely not be pleased either.

After saying what he had to say to Laurel, Quentin then turned towards Sara and Oliver and also regarded them with a stern expression, grinding his teeth slightly while shaking his head in disappointment.

"As for the two of you, your own behavior was out of line as well. Last night was supposed to be about familial healing for myself, Laurel, you Sara, and your mother. Bringing Oliver along with you, regardless of the intent, was very careless and selfish and you should've known better", he said to her severely as she bit her lip nervously and turned her head away in embarrassment. Quentin shook his head at his younger daughter's foolishness and then continued.

"Plus the fact that the two of you came together was more or less flaunting the fact that you had gotten back together regardless of whether or not it was your intent and you had to have known that going about it the way you did would hurt Laurel. And I know that you Oliver are no longer the man who broke my daughter's heart and were completely out of control during your youth, but didn't you realize that you and Sara doing what you did last night would bring up old wounds since yours and hers actions all of those years ago were a major contributor as to why my family collapsed?

"You might've thought that you were helping Sara but you should've had the sense to say no. In fact you going along with this wish was very inappropriate on your part, was not an example of the maturity you've accumulated for yourself, and you had no business being there last night! You and Sara together were both in the wrong, and for the reasons I just specified, and both of you should be ashamed as well."

Quentin then rubbed his hand over his face, feeling mildly exhausted by this whole mess, and continued.

"Frankly, none of you 3 are exactly innocent here in regards to last night's mess and there's plenty of blame to go around here. But it's time for all of you to make peace between yourselves and make things right. In fact, I have no intention of letting any of you leave until you do so. Is that clear!?"

All 3 individuals sitting before him, even Oliver, couldn't help but feel intimated by Quentin's no nonsense attitude and could only nod in acquiescence. And both Oliver and Sara could see that his scolding of their own actions was very much deserved. Sara knew that her actions had been nothing but selfish while also driven by fear, but her taking Oliver with her was not the way to go in regards to handling her fear. Because of it, she'd only ended up hurting her sister once more.

Oliver on his part had known all along that coming along with his girlfriend to the Lance family dinner was a terrible idea for multiple reasons but had willfully and readily chosen to ignore his better judgment, and partly for his own selfish reasons since he'd wanted to be physically close to his love as often as possible, an action which, in this particular case, had only made things worse for everyone. Both he and Sara were feeling very guilty right now and knew they needed to make amends. After quietly communicating to each other, they both shared a nod and then turned towards Laurel.

"Everything your father said is true and I'd like to apologize for ruining your evening with your family", Oliver began calmly, regret in his voice. "It was an evening for all of you to try and reconcile and I had no business being there. And I was also being selfish as well. I hope that you will forgive me and please know that I'll always care about you and will do what I can to help you overcome your current issues if you'll let me."

"I'm sorry as well Laurel. I should've been more sensitive and concerned about how you and dad would feel last night but I was also being selfish and dad was right that my actions more or less flaunted my being back with Oliver", Sara tearfully continued from where Oliver had left off. "Our dinner was supposed to be about all of us, not me, and I am so, so sorry for going behind your backs and in turn ruining things. And like Oliver said, I also want to be there for you however I can and hopefully we can regain the strong sisterly relationship we once had."

Laurel responded to the apologies of her ex and her sister with tears in her own eyes while reaching forward and grasping their hands.

"I forgive you both, and thank you so much", she said to them with a tearful smile filled with love and gratitude, accepting their apology. "Dad was right however in regards to my attitude and behavior and I've been behaving like a self rightous, selfish, out of control person and I had no right to blame you for my problems. I have been behaving like everyone and everything revolved around me and that I was entitled while everyone else be da****. I should not have behaved the way I did at the table last night and I completely accept my share of the blame as to why dinner went south.

"There's no excuse for any of my actions and I should've tried to handle things in a more mature fashion. I am so, so very sorry to the two of you and to you as well dad for my arrogance, hypocrisy, and attitude and for blaming all of you and the world for my alcohol and substance abuse. I ask all of you to please forgive me and from here on out I'm going to make an effort to accept responsibility and clean up my act, starting by accompanying you dad to your AA meetings and attending them regularly until I'm able to overcome my addiction."

Oliver, Sara, and Quentin all accepted her own apology towards them while admiring her resolve towards getting the help she needed. Laurel, Sara, and Oliver then stood up together and enveloped each other in a warm, deep, and strong embrace, holding each other tightly and whispering apologies and words of love and support to each other while crying like babies. Even Quentin himself couldn't help but be moved to tears by the emotional sight before him.

After they were finished, Laurel and Sara fell into their father's arms and he responded by holding both of his precious daughters in his arms, rocking them gently while Oliver moved to the side to allow the family their privacy, knowing that it was the least he owed them after last night's fiasco.

Eventually Quentin released his daughters and they, along with Oliver, thanked him profusely for helping them get their heads out of their behinds and sow the seeds for their reconciliation to which he responded that he was just doing his job as a father and wanted to see peace since there was enough chaos and heartbreak in the world as is and knew that the 3 of them couldn't go on like this.

Laurel remained true to her word and attended AA meetings with her dad and they were a tremendous help to her in finally breaking free of her reliance on pills and booze and she also found a support group among the other recovering alcoholics besides her father. With their help, she was able to clean herself up, get on the road towards recovery, and remain sober.

Oliver and Sara on their part also decided to take a break from their relationship until both Laurel and Quentin were comfortable with it, something which the latter two were very grateful for and eventually gave them their blessing, albeit after reading Oliver the riot act if he ever hurt Sara to which he assured them he'd never do.

Oliver and Sara managed to retain a strong relationship over time as they also worked hard to defend their city, and eventually they would go on to marry and have children together. Laurel on her part met and began a romantic relationship with a boxer and former vigilante named Ted Grant, a good man who wanted to do everything he could to help the youth of the Glades, who she'd marry and have her own kids with.

All in all, everyone ended up happy, mature, and content while the bond among Oliver and the Lance sisters was stronger than ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now the next chapter, which will be for Oliver and Felicity in S5.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> During Oliver's war with Chase, he used the Russian mob to place a hit on him in exchange for allowing them to push illicit drugs throughout the city. Plus we all know about Felicity's crimes in working with Helix and I no longer have any problem with her being called out for it and haven't for some time.
> 
> However, while what Felicity did was worse since she committed treason, jeopardizing national security, Oliver was not innocent either since he was willing to let illicit drugs be shipped inside of his city and in turn allow the city to fall prey to the drug trade after having professed over the years his desire to save his city.
> 
> I'm not an Oliver hater but am only sharing the facts, which are that he abused his office and position by consorting with the mob and the fact that he was willing to let illicit drugs be made available to drug addicts makes him no better than the criminals he hunted and could be seen as the actions of a corrupt mayor, even though it was for the purpose of ending Chase. It's also, like Felicity's actions with Helix and creating the computer virus, that the road to Hell is paved with good intentions. And just as Felicity has been called out and given consequences here, the same should also be done with Oliver here as well.

Oliver and Felicity were sitting inside of their living room that afternoon, relaxing after having eaten a nice lunch earlier, when there was a hard and loud knocking at their door, startling them both.

"Are you expecting someone", Felicity asked him, concerned, while looking towards the door nervously.

"Not that I'm aware of", he answered her with a frown. "You just sit tight and I'll see what's going on". He then went to the door and opened it, revealing a group of uniformed F.B.I. and A.R.G.U.S. agents standing behind it.

"Are you Oliver Queen and is Felicity Smoak here with you?", one of the agents asked him in a serious tone.

"I am he, and yes, she is. What's this all about?", Oliver answered, and then asked, puzzled as to what was happening. One of the F.B.I. agents nodded, satisfied, and then responded by moving behind him and then began handcuffing him while a pair of A.R.G.U.S. agents moved toward Felicity and taking a hold of her, began placing handcuffs around her own wrists.

"Mr. Queen, both you and Felicity are under arrest", the agent explained to him. "The charges against you Mr. Queen are on the grounds of corruption and abuse of power in regards to consorting with the Russian mob with the intent of enabling their transporting of illicit drugs throughout the city and delivering said substances to drug addicted youths as part of an arrangement to use them to place a hit on former D.A. Chase

"As for Miss Smoak, the charges against her involve high treason, violating national security, consorting with the cyber terrorist group Helix, and helping them assault an A.R.G.U.S. government facility while freeing notorious cyber terrorist Cayden James. You both have the right to remain silent, the right to an attorney, and anything you say or do can be held against you in a court of law."

"You however have waived away your rights under our constitution due to your acts of treason Miss Smoak and will be taken to a black ops facility and held there indefinitely, at least until Director Michaels decides what to do with you", one of the A.R.G.U.S. agents who'd handcuffed her added. With that said and done, the agents escorted the protesting and argumentative couple out of their apartment and towards their respective destinations in order for them to pay for their crimes.

As for the Star City council, the news of Oliver's arrest and the charges surrounding his case caused widespread condemnation and led to his impeachment and removal from office.

Oliver received a year and a half in prison over what he'd done but it was reduced to 9 months for good behavior, in addition to Lyla pulling some strings, and he was released on probation with the requirement of community service which Lyla found for him by having him work with her agency during the duration of his probation.

Felicity on the other hand was locked away inside of an A.R.G.U.S black site for almost two years per the direction of Lyla. She ended up not serving the full two years because Lyla, despite everything, was merciful and because after having had plenty of time to think and reflect upon her actions, Felicity on her part was able to understand how serious her actions were and it led to full and complete remorse, sorrow, and true repentance on her part.

She also apologized profusely to Lyla and the other agents she'd betrayed and hurt, not to get out of trouble however but because she truly wanted to make amends. It had varying degrees of success since while Lyla and some of the agents forgave her, others did not and it was something she had to live with.

While Felicity was released from custody, that didn't mean she was off the hook and was therefore turned into an indentured servant of A.R.G.U.S. who was required to help them locate and dismantle Helix. After that operation was completed and without a hitch, she was released but with a special bracelet around her wrist that would prohibit her from using any form of technology except for when she was helping Team Arrow and A.R.G.U.S. Plus she was required to make huge reparations to the government for jeopardizing national security by redirecting their homeland security drones.

In regards to Oliver, he also came to realize as to why his own actions were wrong and that what he'd done was the way to go about ending Chase. After repenting, he made a public apology to the city and to city hall, humbling himself and expressing remorse for his actions and promising that he'd do everything he could to regain their trust. To prove that, he began making generous contributions, financial and otherwise, to numerous anti-drug organizations and charities, helping to expand them across his city. He also secretly rejoined his team as the Green Arrow and continued to lead them in the fight to save their city and find Chase which they did and put an end to the madman's reign of terror.

And so both Oliver and Felicity, because of their respective arrests, learned a valuable lesson that they would never forget and grew into better people with stronger morals because of it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now I know it's true that Oliver's team disrupted his plan with the Russian mob and talked some sense into him on not letting the city be filled with more illicit drugs, but it was still his actions that set things in motion during the pertaining episode and that's why he gets consequences here.
> 
> And now next chapter of this volume will be its last chapter before moving to Volume II, the final volume.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has to do with Felicity and Nyssa during the team's war with the Thanatos Guild. While I felt that Felicity was mostly behaved, selfless, and tolerable in S6, she really annoyed me within this pertaining episode due to insulting her friends by acting as though she was superior just because they didn't understand tech and computers like she did. Everyone has their natural skill set and it shouldn't be used as an excuse to be domineering towards one another.
> 
> Felicity was also rude and towards Nyssa as well and had no reason to be jealous since the other woman, regardless of whatever her sexual orientation was, was not interested in Oliver.
> 
> However, somebody pointed out to me that Nyssa wasn't behaving properly either in that she kept joking about Oliver being her husband and her comments about sister wives. Thinking about it, I think they're right. While Nyssa was married to Oliver under League law, making those kinds of comments were rude and disrespectful towards Felicity herself, and especially since the latter was his legal wife under Western law. And this is from someone who's not an Olicity shipper.
> 
> Even in joking, there are certain things that are just uncouth, bad manners, inappropriate, and should not be said and therefore Nyssa's words were inappropriate and in bad taste. Plus how would anyone here feel if someone was making claims on your spouse regardless of whether or not they were joking or not truly interested in them? Therefore both Nyssa and Felicity get called out here.

Hearing the back and forth bickering between Felicity and Nyssa was getting tiresome for Oliver, especially when they were all supposed to be focusing on the threat of the Thanatos Guild. Not to mention that he was pretty peeved by Felicity insulting the rest of the team just because they didn't understand tech like she did, though he hadn't said anything to her even though he should've.

At this point however, the two women's bickering and jabs trading had finally reached the point of intolerance for him and he responded by putting his foot down hard.

"Alright ladies that is enough! Your little back and forth is getting to be a problem and I am sick of it" Oliver loudly and sternly addressed both Felicity and Nyssa. "Right now you're both going to shut up and listen to what I have to say and neither of you are allowed to say anything until I'm finished".

Nyssa bit her lip but acquiesced to his demand and moved towards the side. Felicity on her part was stunned and about to open her mouth in protest when a glare from Oliver quickly shut her up. After she'd done so, Oliver addressed her first.

"Now you listen here. Your behavior is unacceptable, rude, and out of line. Just because the rest of us don't have full experience with computers, except for myself that is, or understand everything there is to know about tech does not give you the right to behave as though you're better or smarter than us. Have I or anyone else lorded it over you in regards to our fighting skills or any other talents we have that you don't? No, we haven't. And the same courtesy should be extended from you towards us as well and I'd appreciate it if you got off of your high horse and respect the fact that all of us have our own skill set is that clear?!"

Being properly humbled, Felicity could only nod meekly, seeing as to how badly she'd been behaving and understanding that she had no business going on a power trip over her skills with tech. Satisfied with that aspect, Oliver continued with something else he wanted to bring up with her.

"I also don't appreciate how you've been behaving towards Nyssa. I cannot speak for her but I can assure you that she has absolutely no interest in me, none whatsoever. And therefore she's not a threat to you or to our relationship in any way shape or form and you being all snippy and passive aggressive towards her is childish, disrespectful, and you need to cut it out and I don't want to hear any more of that understand?!"

Felicity sighed, but nodded once more, silently acknowledging and accepting that her behavior was indeed childish and out of order. Oliver also nodded satisfied, and then turned towards Nyssa with a glare, who was smirking at his last few words about Felicity's behavior towards her.

"As for you Nyssa, you wipe that smirk off of your face this instant", he firmly said to her, causing said smirk to drop from the ex-assassin's face. "Your behavior and words were very inappropriate as well and you should not have acted in that sort of fashion either. I know that you see us as married under League law even though we are not officially together, but you continuously referring to me as husband while in Felicity's presence and more or less throwing it in her face was also very disrespectful and rude towards her as my wife and I'm not going to tolerate it.

"And even if you were doing it in jest, there are certain things which are in bad taste, insensitive, and out of line, jokes or not. I've also observed the situation and saw that you started those comments in the first place.

"Now if you started them as your version of revenge since Felicity insulted you like she did the rest of us then I can't say that I blame you, but this little tit for that on both of your parts has gone on long enough and you're both out of line, and if you can't show each other the proper respect and only insult each other, then you don't need to be the same room together until for the remaining duration of this mission.

"Now I want both of you to apologize to each other so that we can all move on. Am I understood?!"

Both Felicity and Nyssa looked down nervously but knew that Oliver was right on all counts and that they deserved the stern lecture he'd just given them both. After a moment, Felicity turned towards the other woman.

"Listen Nyssa, I can't say that I wasn't upset or bothered by your comments about Oliver or the continuous comments about us as sister wives because I was, or that it was rubbing me in the wrong way", Felicity humbly began. "However I was being very disrespectful and horrid towards you and my behavior was unbecoming of me. And Oliver's right that I have no reason to be jealous since you have no interest in him anyway and I know that the League marriage was forced upon you by your father.

"I am so, so very sorry for my insulting words, behavior, and comments and I also deeply apologize for trying to demean or act superior to you just because there's certain things about technology, computers, and hacking that you aren't familiar. We are supposed to be a team here and my behavior was unbecoming of a team player.

"Also, if my words and attitude towards you were the reason why you were making those comments about Oliver, then I'd also like to apologize for provoking you due to my obnoxious behavior and because I couldn't handle my unfounded jealousy. Will you please forgive me?"

Nyssa listened carefully to her words and heard the sincerity and repentance in them. She responded by reaching over and grasping Felicity's hand while looking into her eyes.

"Of course I will forgive you, and I deeply appreciate your apology", she answered her with emotion in her own voice. "I'd also like to apologize to you as well however for my own comments and I should've also been more respectful towards you and realized that my words could be hurtful towards you regardless of my own intent and I'm deeply sorry if they made you uncomfortable. And yes, it was because of your rudeness and insults towards me that I behaved the way I did but how I responded wasn't the best was to handle it. Will you please forgive me as well?"

Felicity, eyes watery, nodded and moved closer towards Nyssa followed by the two women wrapping their arms around each other in a tight embrace, whispering tearful apologies as they made up with each other. Oliver watched them with a pleased and relieved smile.

"Now that things are settled and the two of you have made up, I suggest we go join the rest of the team, finish our battle against the Thanatos Guild, and put an end to the remainder of Malcolm's legacy if you're both ready now", he said to them kindly, to which they both answered in the affirmative and 3 of them went on their way to do exactly that.

Also, around this time and shortly after the mission had concluded, Oliver also apologized to Nyssa over the issue of their marriage, acknowledging that he should've resolved it with her before he married Felicity, and offered to resolve it now. Nyssa accepted and they had a small ceremony in which their League sanctioned union was annulled.

And so everything was resolved and Felicity would even go on to become good friends with Nyssa, and that was that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> End Of Volume I. 
> 
> Thanks for reading this volume and I hope everyone here enjoyed it. And I ask that my readers please let me know if any of this work's author's notes were too long or came off as a rant so that I can shorten them if you wish.
> 
> To Be Concluded In "Impartiality Of Consequences, Balanced Reality Checks Volume II: Arrow and Flash Edition"

**Author's Note:**

> And there we have it, and I hope you liked it. And now let's go to the next chapter for the next firm, yet balanced and/or fair, doses of reality.


End file.
